Beginning of the End
by dargy.ftw
Summary: One-shot, A soldier finds his base totally destroyed with no sign of the enemy...


**Disclaimer:** I do not own StarCraft: Brood War, though I would really wish to. SC is owned by Blizzard and so are all the units. The plot was influenced from different stories. Don't sue me; I am simply writing this story to thank Blizzard for making such a great game.

StarCraft: Brood War – The Beginning of the End 

                The desolate wind blew into Base Theta-0172, scattering the smoke that rose from the charred buildings. The base was silent, save for the crackling of small fires. Bodies of Terrans lay everywhere in the base, most missing parts of their bodies. All of the deceased had two things in common; the most obvious one was that they were dead. The second was the widespread death masks of fear.

                Sergeant Andrew Connors gazed around at the destruction. He had already seen the ruins of bunkers that protected the perimeter of the base. All the bodies were Terran, none of the deceased were Protoss or Zerg. Could the enemy have been Terran also? Connors shook free of his thoughts and made his way to the Command Center.

                The Command Center looked no better than the carnage around it. Pieces of the armor plating had fallen off, revealing the inner skeleton of the massive building. Sparks flew down as fires still danced merrily on the structure. Hasty fortifications still stood around the huge building and bodies piled high around the Command Center. Connors promised to pray for the men and women who had died in defense of the base after he was finished. He first had to send a message to his superior. The Sergeant moved toward the front of the Command Center and found the door ajar; obviously someone had already been in the area. Connors cocked his rifle, checked his armor and moved into the darkness.

                He turned on his flashlight and made his way through the technological maze that was the Command Center. Beams of steel and fires often blocked his way but Connors either backtracked or braved the hazards. He held his rifle, his only friend, close, keeping a wary eye on his six and on the shadows. The sound of his walking made him nervous; there was no sign of life other than him. The Sergeant passed mutilated bodies but still had no clear sign of his enemy. Finally reaching his destination, he looked around, searching for the ever-elusive adversary. Finally secure that he was alone, Andrew Connors went to a nearby console and pressed a button, initiating an audio-only communication line directly to his superior. His superior answered his call almost immediately, "This is only for priority Alpha communications. What do you want?"

                Connors spoke slowly, weighing every word. "Sir, this is Sergeant Andrew Connors from Base Theta-0172. We've been hit hard, sir. Casualties are almost 100%. I'm…" he hesitated, aware that whoever, or _whatever_, had killed his teammates was still out there. He continued, speaking without delay. "I'm the only survivor."

                There was a moment of silence on the other end. "I see. Can I get a detailed report?"

                "Sir, at 0700 hours, I was sent with a squad on a recon mission. We made our way 5 miles west of the base and found a…" the Sergeant wrinkled his nose at the name, "A Xel'Naga Temple."

                "Continue."

                "Sir, then, everything went to hell. We received a distress call from the base, demanding us to return to our positions on the perimeter. I made my way back but everyone was dead by then."

                "How about your teammates?"

                "We were lost and split up after we got the distress signal. I haven't seen any trace of them so far."

                "And the enemy?"

                "I have no idea, sir. Everyone was massacred. There were no alien bodies too."

                 "Thank you very much, Sergeant. That will be all." Connors was about to disconnect the link when the commander came back on, his tone suddenly grew cold and grim. Surprisingly, Connors' superior did not address him. "You may kill him now."

                And the shadows grabbed the last living survivor of Base Theta-0172, eager to imprint a mask of fear upon Sergeant Andrew Connors' face.

                Lieutenant Duran listened to the screams most enjoyably. To him, every scream was a beautiful yet destructive note made by his greatest creations yet. The loss of a Terran base was no matter to him; all he cared about was the performance of his Hybrids. Duran clenched his fist in victory and closed his eyes, exercising his will upon his servants. Imparting his wishes upon the minds of his Hybrids, he searched out another mind. Finding her, he sent a whisper to her, the wind carrying the psionic message to her and her minions. The message glided over hills, water, and finally over, the Creep that announced the presence of the Zerg.

                Kerrigan, the Queen of Blades, lifted herself from her throne of bone as she heard the whisper.

                "I am coming for you, my pawn. You cannot comprehend the danger that is coming. You and your minions are no match for my servants. You cannot win. We will take it all. Soon, this entire universe will be mine and there will be no resistance."

                The Queen of Blades slumped back and wondered what Duran had in store.

A/N: Ok, I wrote this to announce the entrance of the Hybrids and their capabilities in destroying all that they see. I also wrote this to help the StarCraft section, which hasn't had an influx of good writing for a while. (I'm not saying I'm good or anything!) This story is one-shot, meaning I will not continue this. However, I will write other stories; I find no way to actually continue this story without assuming too much. Other than that, nothing more needs to be said.

                                                                                                                **Dargon, Dragon's Outcast**


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